This is the information i know so far. And correct me if I'm wrong. Gravely is the commercial line of mowers for Ariens. I live a couple blocks away from a dealer that has both of these mowers. Gravely is quite a bit more expensive then a Ariens. I could get the Gravely ZT42 for $2,699, or the Ariens ZT42 for $2,299 new at the dealer. Any suggestions on which one i should go for? Used? Thank you for any advice!

Steve

04-06-2011, 10:15 AM

Are they both new?

Does the dealer give you any kind of warranty?

Did they tell you the lifespan of both the machines?

ivyslawncare

04-06-2011, 01:05 PM

Yes they are both new and they do give warrenty. Im not really sure what it is off the top of my head.

wandfsmall

04-06-2011, 04:13 PM

For the most part your looking at a decal change. But you are also looking at going from a Briggs to a Kawasaki engine. I would go with neither of them for commercial use they will nickle and dime you to death and drop your margins.

wellbiz

04-06-2011, 04:29 PM

Yes they are both new and they do give warrenty. Im not really sure what it is off the top of my head.

Is the warranty for commercial use? You are probably better off saving your money and buying a true commercial mower or a good used commercial mower if your budget is tight.

ivyslawncare

04-07-2011, 02:12 PM

what mowers/engine do you recommend? And i do have a budget of around 3000 but i do not want anything over a 42 inch

andersontl2

04-07-2011, 02:39 PM

I have a Gravley WAW 34" Mower...with the 10.5 Briggs Motor and love it. Bought it as a gate mower, but have used it for alot of full jobs. Runs great and does what I need it to, as long as you take care of it the Gravley is a good mower. Would not want to use it for 100% of my business but if you are just starting out and have a few accounts it will get you by just fine. Don't get me wrong commercial stuff is AWESOME and if you can affored it buy it, but the Gravley is a tuff mower and will give you years of service.

wandfsmall

04-07-2011, 06:40 PM

what mowers/engine do you recommend? And i do have a budget of around 3000 but i do not want anything over a 42 inch

I would try to find a bobcat dealer and get a walk behind mower. If you have to have a rider try a Hustler Sport the frame is pretty good and you should be able to find a Honda or Kawasaki sport in a decent price range.

ivyslawncare

04-07-2011, 09:39 PM

I've heard equally great responses for Gravely and Hustler, and the prices are in the same price range. But the reason that I'm leaning toward Gravely is there is a dealer a couple blocks away from me, as to Hustler where the dealer is 45 minutes away from me. And just out of curiosity does anyone know what a good sized engine is to push snow with if i had a blade on the front of a zero turn?

wandfsmall

04-08-2011, 08:19 AM

I've heard equally great responses for Gravely and Hustler, and the prices are in the same price range. But the reason that I'm leaning toward Gravely is there is a dealer a couple blocks away from me, as to Hustler where the dealer is 45 minutes away from me. And just out of curiosity does anyone know what a good sized engine is to push snow with if i had a blade on the front of a zero turn?

I agree with the reviews for the most part, when you get to the true gravely machines. The one you are looking at is an ariens machine. for the money I would go with the gravely as it has a better engine but do not attach anything to the mower and be careful of hitting something the deck will bend easily.

ivyslawncare

04-08-2011, 10:23 AM

Ok thanks for all the input! I think I'll end up going with a Gravely just becasue if anything does happen, the dealer is in my town!

Steve

04-08-2011, 11:50 AM

Let us know how you like it once you start using it.

cbservicesllc

06-19-2011, 09:50 PM

I know its a little late in the game, but I thought I'd contribute. Gravely makes some good light to medium duty machines. I myself have a Gravely ZT 42" XL. I wanted to go with a lower end model because I didn't want to go wider than 42". At least the deck is 10 gauge with a little reinforcement.

It is a little beefier than the heavy duty homeowner models and doesn't have the throw away transmissions. The one downside is that it has plastic bushings in the front casters. I've already had a guy make me replacement bushings out of brass and had him tap an area or a grease zerk.